Tesla $TSLA ( ▼ 0.2% ) jumped Monday after the company confirmed it is testing Robotaxis in Austin with no safety drivers inside the vehicle, a milestone that investors see as a real step toward fully autonomous ride-hailing. The move pushed Tesla higher while ride-share rivals Uber $UBER ( ▼ 1.08% ) and Lyft $LYFT ( ▼ 1.91% ) slid sharply as markets reassessed the competitive landscape.
No Driver, No Backup Plan
Over the weekend, Tesla began testing Robotaxis without safety monitors in the front or back seats. CEO Elon Musk confirmed on X that the cars are being tested with “no occupants in the car,” signaling progress toward Tesla’s stated goal of removing safety drivers across large parts of Austin by the end of the year.
The development suggests Tesla’s autonomous tech is moving out of controlled demos and into real-world deployment. That momentum appears to be spooking investors in traditional ride-hailing platforms that still rely on human drivers to operate at scale.
The Autonomous Arms Race Heats Up
Uber and Lyft shares fell as investors digested the implications of a future where Tesla could operate a fully autonomous ride-hailing network without paying drivers. Even Alphabet $GOOGL ( ▲ 0.48% ) , which owns Waymo, the current leader in commercial robotaxis, dipped slightly in early trading, though it is unclear whether that move was directly tied to Tesla’s announcement.
Tesla bull Dan Ives of Wedbush reiterated his long-term optimism, predicting Tesla could command roughly 70 percent of the global autonomous driving market over the next decade. If that vision plays out, Monday’s test may be remembered as one of the first real inflection points.